Madden 09 News Post

Madden 09: Reading Defensive Coverages

04:07 PM - May 27, 2009 by RaychelSnr

If you want to improve your passing game, then you have to properly read defensive coverages. So we will teach you how to figure out if the defense is running man or zone coverage, and also how to tell the difference between specific zone coverages. Best of all, we will teach you how to do this before you even snap the ball.

This tip can be applied to any playbook and basically any play. In order to first tell if the defense is in man or zone, you will need to be in a spread (ex: Gun 4 WR) and a compressed (ex: Gun Snugs) formation in your playbook. I like to have one of each in my audibles because it makes for easy access at all times.

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# 1 BigL @ 05/27/09 04:14 PM

Good work. I like to simply motion my WR to see if the CB follows to determine man or not.

# 2 PGaither84 @ 05/27/09 04:18 PM

this is why we finally will see the return of Man lock from legacy gen madden games. Should have never left the game, and should have been in 09 for sure...

Man lock will negate this otherwise obvious article.

Aside from graphics, the last generation of madden games really had a LOT of game play sim-style innovations that are needed to play human vs human.

# 3 PantherBeast_OS @ 05/27/09 04:45 PM

Good read. Hopefully this will help me in madden 10

# 4 DolphinRising @ 05/27/09 06:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PGaither84


	this is why we finally will see the return of Man lock from legacy gen madden games. Should have never left the game, and should have been in 09 for sure... Man lock will negate this otherwise obvious article. Aside from graphics, the last generation of madden games really had a LOT of game play sim-style innovations that are needed to play human vs human.

Oh how i miss man lock (madden 01 was when it was first implemented)
it could be a good combo if used with man allign (introduced in madden 05-07 some where in those years)

# 5 Captain Obvious @ 05/27/09 07:41 PM

man its easy to read what coverage the D is in..

safeties go wide, cover 2 man or zone, and even then you know the difference ( against zone, attack the mid, man, lol anything)

1 safety goes high and the other low, some type of cover 3.
(curls or corners, posts if your quick)

all DBS go back, cover 4
(underneath routes, again curls or crosses and slants)

always read the safeties first, then the linebackers. you can determine what theyre in in a second flat

# 6 themaddenlab @ 05/27/09 08:02 PM

Thank you for the kind words. Stay tuned as we will bring you a new tip every week!

# 7 BlackRome @ 05/27/09 09:23 PM

The last Xbox version might have been the best. While everyone ran out to buy the first madden on 360 the xbox was running the best madden I ever played.

It's a shame that they have been releasing this game for 3 years on 360 and it still has not added certain things from Madden 07.

How about adding the mercy rule to online play. SO if a person quits you can get the score to a certain point in the second half and give the AI mercy.

I want to play humans. Not run up the score on the AI when a person quits.

# 8 Valdarez @ 05/27/09 10:57 PM

I never really played Madden online, but I loved the zone coverage in APF2K8 where players would read zones. All you had to do was figure out their favorite passing routes (everyone has a pattern), and then set them up for a pick with a hot route / hot man towards the area of the field or player they are throwing too. Works pretty good, and can give you that key INT you need in the 3rd / 4th quarter.

In APF2K8 you can look at players stats sheets, see whether they throw short, medium, or long, or to the left, middle, or right of the field. In addition, you can see which side of the field they run to left, middle, right. If you don't get to see their stats before the game then by the half you can have a pretty good feel for how players play (where they run, types of runs they use) and where they pass (types of passes they use).

Reading a defense is good, but always keep an eye out for the adjustment, because if you're playing a good player, you can bet your bottom dollar it's coming.

# 9 oneforthethumb @ 05/27/09 11:48 PM

Thats why I like using the Cover 2 Sink out of the 3-4, Nickel 2-4-5, or the Dollar formations. If you show blitz the safeties will rotate like Cover 3. (SS in box, FS over deep middle). Then put the guys you have over the slot positions into buzz zones. (whether its you LBs or your nickel backs). Since corner routes are a great place to throw against Cover 3. Ive gotten alot of ints because my opponent thought I was in Cover 3 and they tried to go to the corner.

Of course in Madden 10 will be different because you will actually have some protection. So you would realize that the corners arent open.

# 10 boritter @ 05/28/09 01:04 AM

Nice write up.

# 11 rbowlden @ 05/28/09 01:27 PM

Pretty good stuff, i just move my wr in motion and see if the db follows

# 12 tswiatkowski @ 05/28/09 10:11 PM

most of the time i just use motion to figure out the coverage

# 13 maddenmindsocom @ 07/06/09 02:16 PM

when i read zone on madden 09 i go to the screen draws and ddep posts, if its man i just do a drag or corner out. but madden 09 is such garbage if you dont have the right d you can literaly come out in 4 curls and user catch them the whole game

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Madden 09: Reading Defensive Coverages